Posts Tagged ‘Audiosurf’

There are plenty of plausible reasons to criticise Audiosurf. Unfortunately I’m almost entirely oblivious to them, as it’s doing such a wonderful job of fulfilling a very important purpose in my life – giving me a reason to do nothing other than listen to music while still feeling like I’m achieving something. I suspect I’d still be spending too long staring vacantly at iTunes visualisations if I didn’t own Audiosurf. It’s made me a better man.

Part of its charm is the never-know-what-you’re-gonna-get-next element. You’ll pick a song with a fair idea of whether it’s suitable, but often enough it’ll surprise- presenting a track that’s more elegantly undulated than expected, or instead a jerky, sick-making mess (I’d strongly advise against trying The Specials). Evan Merz, though, has gone beyond the guesstimation the rest of us use, paintstakingly creating midi music designed to specifically provoke certain track shapes and effects in the game.Read the rest of this entry »

The standard of entries this year was just stunning, and when we’ve tried to pick out our favourite of the top prize entries, it’s been impossible. For us it came down to three. Audiosurf has taken over our lunchtimes (and mornings and afternoons and evenings) this week, and is obviously a triumphant achievement. Crayon Physics Deluxe is so charming and serene, while letting you feel like a wizard as your drawings come to life. And World of Goo evoked memories in us of the first time we played Lemmings (a high compliment indeed). Winners lie beyond.

For instance, I’ve just tried it with Steeleye Span‘s All Around My Hat. A very bumpy course, but despite my best hopes, possibly not the most exciting. But then! Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler! This song has EXPLOSIONS IN IT. An epic track.

So come on – only the best. Nerd up, and confess which songs you’ve tried. We’ll create the ultimate Audiosurf playlist. Right, more Steinman then… MEATLOAF!

News reaches us, courtesy of our comrades at PC Gamer, that Audiosurf will be available to pre-order on Steam from later today, with the full version available on Friday for those who fancy canoodling with a Game as a Valentines day come-down. Also, it’ll come with Valve pop hits like Still Alive, TF2’s retro-jingles and the electro-bleeps of Half-life 2. And, tech-watchers should note, it’s the first game including the Steamworks tech.

Our love for Audiosurf remains undimmed since Jim looked at it a few weeks ago. Having played most of the IGF grand finalists, my position is that while World of Goo is the best game per se and probably should be the winner and Crayon Physics is simply the most magical, Audiosurf will make the most money. Getting on Steam’s a good start for making that prediction come true, yeah? Oh – and PCG have an interview with creator Dylan Fitterer too…Read the rest of this entry »

Those handsome rakes over at Eurogamer are previewing the IGF finalists and they were kind enough to ask me to take a look at psychedelic music-morpher, Audiosurf. It’s a game that turns your MP3 collection into a kind of Wipeout-moulded puzzle game. Neat trick, I thought, and then proceeded to encapsulate my glee and mild bafflement in a moderately long-winded description:

The program analyses the track before you play, creating the pacing and the gameplay space that you’re going to be surfing through. This means that as the music peaks, so do the visuals that surround your game. If you’re in a particularly intense section, then the chances are that the music will be rising as you play. When the music hammers home its major releases, so the neon track scintillates around you. As you’ll see when you have a play of Audiosurf (because I’m sure every gamer and his roadie will want to take a look at this), it’s a deeply impressive effect, especially when the program takes just a few seconds to figure out how to deliver your MP3 back to you in audio-visual gameplay form.